WHITSUN AT BROOKLANDS
WHITSUN AT BROOKLANDS
STAR” WON AT OVER 122 M.P.H. THE LEYLAND-THOMAS GOES UP IN FLAMES. A VARIED PROGRAMME OF MOUNTAIN AND OUTER-CIRCUIT EVENTS.
The Whitsun meeting at Brooklands has come to be considered almost the primus inter pares of the four principal meetings, and all that was wanted to make it a complete success was a touch of the traditional blazing sunshine. The events were for once run off with commendable dispatch, and even with a heavy rain-shower half-way through, the whole of the programme was disposed of by 6.30.
The big event was of course, the “Gold Star,” which was won by Pacey on the Pacey-Hassan Special (nee 44-litre Bentley). Oliver Bertram was driving the 8-litre Hassan Special, which is now fitted with a narrow single-seater body, and he and Lord Howe on his 3.3-litre Bugatti provided a thrilling spectacle as they careered round together at high speed near the top of the banking. Unfortunately the limitation of Brooklands as a track for fast cars such as these was shown all too clearly. Both cars fell out with stripped tyre treads as a result of holding them down the banking and some of the smaller cars were similarly afflicted.
Munday had an extremely lucky escape from injury during the course of the same race. The engine of the Leyland-Thomas locked solid coining off the Home Banking, and the entire underneath of the engine went up in flames. Not realising the extent of the damage, Munday put the car into neutral and coasted to the finishing line, when the fire spread upwards and where prompt action with fire extinguishers prevented the car from being a total loss.
In practising, we regret to say, a fatal accident occurred, when K. Carr, driving Harry Rose’s Alfa-Romeo, crashed through the fence in the Railway Straight. Such things are always liable to happen with a light, fast car, but such accidents have been happily rare in the history of Brooklands. The racing began with the usual “Short.” The field embraced such varied cars as Sandiford’s Singer and Munday’s Leyland-Thomas, and it was difficult to pick a winner. Sandiford who was the limit man kept ahead of Kelway (14-litre Bugatti) for a lap, but he then slowed down and retired. The back markers then started to come through, and
Appleton on his Special showed a fine turn of speed and cut through to the front with half a lap to spare. Mrs. Briggs (1,089 c.c. Riley) managed to retain second place, while Charles Follett produced his usual knots from his fourseater Speed Twenty Alvis and swept past Thatcher (1,287 c.c. M.G.) as they swung down off the Home Banking.
First Short Handicap Distance : About 61 males
1. It. .1. W. Appleton (1,089 c.c. Appleton-Special S.) 298.
2. Mrs. G. Briggs (1,098 c.o. Riley) 32s.
3. C. Follett (2,762 c.c. Alvis) 32s.
13 ran. Won by Rs. (500 yards) ; Is. (5 yards) Speed 131.07 m.p.h.
Betting : 5-1, 6-1, 3-1.
Lord Howe with his 3.3-litre Bugatti was on the scratch mark in the second race. In practice he had been lapping at 138 m.p.h. There were ten other starters, most of them drivers who had taken part in the first event. The first time on the Home Banking Oxley (14-litre Hermon) had overtaken Thatcher (KG.) and Follett (Alvis) was
A spirited duel between Tuson (Fiat) and. Dr. Joy (Talbot ” 90 “) was the principal feature of the first Mountain Race. Joy had two seconds’ start on Tuson, but the Fiat was abreast as they reached the top corner. ‘Fuson swung it high and wide on the banking and dived down so close as almost to baulk the Talbot driver, in this way getting the lead. Baron (1i-litre Bugatti) whose car suffered from wheel-tramp, Powys-Lybbe (2.5litre Alvis), M. May (2-litre Alvis) and Tenbosch started off the four-seater mark together and reached the corner in the above order and Tenbosch in trying to emulate Tuson’s cornering spun right round on the banking, fortunately clear of the other ears.
On the second lap Tuson had a lead of several lengths and cornered less dangerously, being particularly neat at the Fork, where he kept well in. For a lap there was a close struggle for third place between Kelway and Curtis (AstonMartin) but then the latter driver was overtaken by the later starters. Kelway, a hundred yards behind the warring Masters and Joy, led a bunch consisting of Hughes (Vauxhall) Peters (Frazer-Nash) Powys-Lybbe and Baron. Powys-Lylibe’s cornering at the Fork was something to wonder about and after sending a barrel spinning on the last lap he went through to take third place by a small margin.
First Mountain Handicap Distance : About 6 miles
1. C. H. Masters (995 c.c. Fiat) 34s.
2. Dr. D. Joy (2,276 c.c. Talbot) 368.
3. A. Powys-Lybbe (2,511 c.c. Alvis) 46.
11 ran. Won by (50 yards); 41s. (200 yards); 60.52 m.p.h.
Betting : 6-1, 2-1, 5-1.
Eccles and Rayson were non-starters in the Second Mountain Handicap, and this left Dobbs (2-litre Riley) on scratch,
6 seconds behind Walker on Whitehead’s E.R.A. Baratouni (T.T. M.G. Magnette) 46s. managed to keep ahead for the first two laps in spite of being unblown. KingClark (Magnette) passed Monkhouse (1,093 c.c. Amilcar S.) and Donald Letts (Magnette) got in front of the never very successful Harker Special. Walker was very wide at the Fork, with Dobbs in close pursuit closer in. • On the third lap there was a tremendous bunch at the Pork, the scratch men had closed right up, and Letts in the lead was closely followed by King-Clark, Dobbs who had swooped ahead of Walker off the top of the banking, and the E.R.A. A lap later the Riley was in front, while
Walker found he was saving time by keeping closer to the Fork. This enabled him to overhaul Letts when less than a lap from home.
Second Mountain Handicap Distance : About 6 miles
1. H. G. Dobbs (1.986 c.c. Riley) scratch.
2. P. D. Walker (1.488 c.c. E.R.A., S.) 68.
3. D. N. Letts (1.287 cc. M.G.) 33s.
10 ran. Won by 518. (200 yards) ; lis. (50 yards); 73.13 m.p.h.
Betting : 6-4, 6-1, 5-1. As a result of his performance in the previous race Dobbs on his next appearance was put back 6 seconds to scratrh, starting level with Tim Rose-Richards. on the 4-litre Sunbeam. Hughes (30-98, Vauxhall) 56s. had over a lap start on. the Sunbeam but Tim caught him at. the Fork, only to slow up with misfiring when he put his foot down. Powys-Lybbe (Alvis) cornered each time with a widesweep at really high speed and had no. difficulty in holding second place for the first four laps. Parnell (M.G. MagnetteS.) lay third, but retired after three laps. Dr. Roth (single-seater Talbot 105) P. Richards (Frazer-Nash) Esson-Scott
litre Bugatti) Vickers (2.3-litre Bugatti) and ” Bira ” (Magnette) added to the spectacle by coining round each time in an exciting tussle. The Sunbeam belched out clouds of smoke each time Rose-Richards attempted to accelerate, but Dobbs was coming through at a great rate, skimming theblack line each time he took the top corner and fighting the car round the hair-pin at the Fork. On the last lap Hughes still had a fifty-yard lead, but he missed his gear at the top corner, allowing PowysLybbe to draw almost level. A piece of super-cornering by the latter driver put the Alvis in the lead as they got away from the Fork, but then Dobbs suddenly flicked round in close pursuit and passed them both in the run-in up the Finishing Straight. Altogether a breath
taking race.
Third Mountain Handicap Distance : About 6 miles I. G. c.c. scratch
I. H. G. Dobbs (1,986 c.c. Riley) scratch
2. A. Powys-Lybbe (2,511 c.o. Alvis) 418.
3. R. Hughes (4,366 c.o. Vauxhall) 56s. 13 ran. Won by is. (1 length) ; is. (1 length) ;
76.03 m.p.h. Betting : 2-1, 6-1, 6-1.
There were ten runners for the ” Gold Star “Trophy, which is a seven-lap event with the Trophy and 4:100 as first prize. The biggest car in the race was Captain Barnato’s 8-litre Hassan Special, which started from scratch with Lord Howe’s 3.3-litre Bugatti. Duller was driving the 4.3-litre Duesenburg, starting off the 15-second mark with John Cobb ,(4-litre Sunbeam). Marker (64-litre Bentley) received 34 seconds, Pacey
lm 14s., Munday 1m. 19s., while the limit car was Samuel’s Q. type M.G. Midget, which received I ni. 36s. Samuel made a good start and Munday was already ahead of Pacey as they came
round the Home Banking the first time. Major Gardner’s single-seater M.G. Magnette, of which much was expected, was -never in the picture, touring round the bottom of the banking to retire. Samuel was round again before the scratch cars appeared. After a slower start, Lord Howe had passed Bertram on the Home Banking and had a fiftyyard lead as they entered the Railway
Straight. Pacey was now almost abreast of Munday, and passed him as they gained the Byfleet. A third time round, Samuel still led, Pacey had. 30 yards on the Leyland Thomas, then came Hamilton (Alfa Romeo) who dived each time to avoid the Bump, Marker high and steady in the 01-litre Bentley, Cobb (Sunbeam) and Duller (Duesenburg). Lord Howe seemed to be holding Bertram, running very high on the banking and lapping at 1.37.96 m.p.h., a magnificent effort on such a light car. The following lap saw a change in the situation, for Pacey and Munday, still maintaining their same relative positions had passed the M.G., to take the first two places. Bertram was now but a couple of lengths behind Howe and ready to pass, but it was not until they got to the end of the Railway Straight
that the Barnato-Hassan gained the lead. With one-and-a-half laps to go, could the scratch men catch Pacey and Munday? This was at any rate settled in the negative
for Lord Howe, who drove in slowly from the Fork with his rear tyre in ribbons.
Bertram kept on at a great pace, but suddenly when he was only fifty yards behind Munday a tread on a rear tyre disintegrated, putting him out of the struggle. On the last lap Munday revealed a new spurt of speed and going up to the Home Banking was only three or four lengths
behind. Almost abreast they shot under the Members’ Bridge, then without the slightest warning, Munday’s car started a prodigious skid. The engine had locked solid but the driver was not taken unawares, righting his car and declutching instantaneously. The crank-case of the long-suffering engine had burst like a bomb and the track was littered with pieces of metal. More alarming still, the bottom of the engine was now a mass of flames, and only prompt action on the finishing line prevented the car from going up in a fatal blaze. Almost unnoticed in all this excitement,’ Pacey swept on to the finishing line, winner of the race by over half a mile. Samuel had already dropped out with a flung tyre tread, and it was left to John Cobb on the 4-litre Sunbeam to pick Up second place. Some remarkable laps were put up in the course of the race, as the following figures show :
Bertram. 140.29 m.p.h.; Earl Howe 137.96 m.p.h. ; Duller, 130.04 m.p.h. ; Cobb, 130.45 m.p.h. ; Marker. 131.06 m.p.h.; Hamilton, 125.45 m.p.h. ; Pacey, 128.03 m.p.h.; Munday, 126.73 in.p.h. ; Samuel 118.02 n p.h.
The “001(1 Star” Trophy Race Distance : About 20 miles
I. E. W. W. Pacey (4,487 c.c. Pacey Hassan Special) Ira. 14s.
2. J. R. Cobb (3,976 cc.. Sunbeam S.) 15s.
3. R. It. K. Marker (6,597 c.c. Bentley) 34s. 10 ran. Won by 18fs. (1,000 yards); 4s. (250 yards); 122.53 m.p.h. Betting : 2-1, 4-1, 10-1.
An interesting special event had been arranged, this being a flight by Ken Waller, chief instructor at the Flying School, on a 1912 Caudron biplane. It was unfortunate that torrents of rain fell at the same time, forcing most of the spectators to flee for cover instead of watching the leisurely manceuvres of this veteran type. When the rain stopped Duller and Miss Allan were sent round the track to report on conditions, and finding pools of water near the Fork, the Outer-Circuit races were deferred to allow the track to dry. In their stead the two remaining Mountain Races were run off.
Only eight out of fourteen starters ran, ” I3ira ” and Scribbans on their E.R.A.s being virtually scratch in the absence of Eccles (3.3-litre Bugatti). On “the first lap Clayton (4milPar) had already passed the limit man, limes (M.G. Magnette S.), Letts (1,287 c.c. Magnette) being third followed by Cadell (Magnette S.) and Samuel (Q. type M.G.). Scribbans led ” Bira ‘ whose car sounded unhealthy and was slow off the mark.
On the second lap Clayton was closely pressed by Letts, with Innes a few lengths astern, then Cadell, Samuel, Dr. Roth (less dashing than usual on his new singleseater Talbot) and Scribbans. Clayton and Letts held the lead for another two laps though Scribbans picked up a number of cars coming round the banking and lay third in front of Samuel. On the last lap he nipped inside Clayton as they swung under the Members’ Bridge and won comfortably by a well-deserved 4 seconds.
Fourth Mountain Handicap Distance : About 6 miles
1. D. H. Scribbans (1,438 c.c. B.R.A. 5,) 4s.
2. A. R. Samuel (747 d.og M.G. S.) 11s.
3. H. T. H. Clayton (1,093 c.c. Andlcar S.) 37s. 8 ran. Won by 4s. (150 yards); na. (75 yards) 72.62 m.p.h. Betting : 4-1, 10-1, 6-1.
Five out of twelve cars in the Fifth Mountain Handicap were blown M.G. Magnettes. Rose-Richards On the 4-litre Sunbeam was scratch, but Scribbans (E.R.A.) had been put back to “owe 2 seconds ” on the strength of his previous performance. An interesting car was the Iflitre Ballamy, which was based on Cholmondeley ‘rapper’s -11-litre Bugatti, and fitted with Ballamy suspension.
In principle this is a split front axle with radius rods and a transverse front spring and with Dick Seaman at the wheel the car should have put up a good performance. Unfortunately the engine was sulky, and the chassis had no chance of proving its merits.
Michael May (Alvis), who received 41 seconds, and the other limit cars got well away, but Rose-Richards had difficulty in getting the Sunbeam off the mark, while the E.R. A. spun its wheels and spat back. May was in the lead on the first lap, King-Clark (M.G.) had passed Mrs. Eccles (M.G.) then came Cadell and Carr, also on M.G.s. On the second lap the leaders ‘ere the same, followed by a bunbh which included Cadell,. Leitch (2.3-litre Bugatti) Carr and Wilkinson, the latter driving J. H. 1′. Smith’s very rapid Magnette. On the run up to the top corner Wilkinson beat the other three, got into a broadside under the Members’ Bridge but quickly recovered, and shot off in pursuit of the leaders. Scribbans was also exciting, going right up the black line in his attempts to regain time lost at the start. On the fourth lap Wilkinson was in the lead, and desrite the inspired driving
of Scribbans who gained second place from. Leitch coming down to the Fork on the last lap, won by 150 yards.
Fifth Mountain Handicap Distance : About 6 miles 1. W. E. Wilkinson c.c. l.G. 13s.
1. W. E. Wilkinson (1,087 c.c. l.G. S.) 13s.
2. D. H. &ribbons (1,488 c.c. E.11,.A. S.), owes 2s.
3. A. Leitch, (2,263 c.c. Bugatti S.) 19s.
12 ran. Won by ftis. (120 yards); 3*s. (120 yards); 71.15 m.p.h.
Betting: 24, 24, 104. The track was now considered dry enough for Outer-Circuit racing, and the Second Long Handicap was rim off, with seven runners out of the original fifteen entered. Oats (II-litre Alvis) who. was receiving Im. 36s. kept well away from Baker (5.3-litre Graham-Paige) mi., for the first two laps, but was overhauled by the big car on the Byfleet Banking on the third. Meanwhile Miss Allan had been going great guns on Marker’s 6I-litre Bentley running very high on the banking and actually pulling away from the Duesenburg, and by the time she reached the Fork was second. She caught Baker just as they were coming off the Home Banking and finished with a comfortable lead. Duller crossed the line practically wheel to wheel with the Graham-Paige, failing for second place
by second. Miss Allan’s fastest lap was at about 118 m.p.h., a stout effort.
Second Long Handicap Distance : About 9 miles
1. Miss M. Allan (6,597 c.c. Bimtley) 16s. 2. G. L. Baker (5,387 c.C. (1raham-Paige)
3. It. L. Duller (4,376 c.c. Duesenberg) scratch. 7 ran. Wen by its, (100 yards); is. (1 length); 115.25 m.p.h.
Betting : 6,1, 10-1, 5-1. In the final race of the meeting, a ” Short,” ‘Fuson (Fiat) led off from scratch then Oats (Alvis), Peters (Frazer-Nash),
who had overtaken the Marendaz, and the Graham-Paige, which was pulling away from Fleming’s blown Midget. Peters. passed Oats over by the aeroplane Sheds. and these two kept up a continual duel until the end. Meanwhile Baker on the Graham-Paige had been coming up strongly and passed them tO take second place on the Byfleet, only himself to he caught by Samuel (Q type Midget) before they had reached the Fork. These two cars both passed Tuson on the Home Banking just after they had completed their second lap, while Fleming passed to third place shortly afterwards.
Second Short Handicap Distance : About Of miles
1. A.. Sainu0 (747 c.c. NI .(i. S.) 34s:
2: 0. L. ‘Raker (5,387 c.c. 0raham-raige) 49s. 3. IL, C. Fleming -(747 c.c. 11.0. S.) 408. 11 ran. Won by its. yards); Is. (50 yards) ;: 107.83
Betting : 2-1, 5-1. 10-1.
ahead of Baker (5.3-litre Graham-Paige). The Appleton-Special was again going well and Lord Howe was high on the banking, putting in a standing lap at 118.3 m.p.h. At the end of the first lap Oxley had dropped out, leaving WindsorRichards (30/98 Vauxhall) in pursuit of Thatcher. On the second lap the Vauxhall was well in the lead, Baker had passed Thatcher, with Billy Cotton (Magnette) in close attendance, and Follett had dropped slightly behind with smoke coming from his car. Lord Howe had passed Pacey (44-litre Hassan Special) but would have to hurry to reach the limit men. He collected all the stragglers on the last lap, timed at 138.34, but failed by 100 yards to catch the Magnette.
First Long Handicap Distance : About 9 miles
1. C W. Windsor-Richards, (4,234 c.c. Vauxhall) lm. 13s.
2. Billy Cotton (1,087 c.c. M.G.,S.) lm. 88.
3. Earl Howe (3,255 c.c. Bugatti S.) scratch. 11 ran. Won by 100. (550 yards) ; 28. (100 yards) 106.61 m.p.h.
Betting ; Evens, 5-1, 6-1.